Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Hazardous Substance Use among People with Psychiatric Disabilities Visiting Day Centers

Eklund, Mona LU orcid and Ojehagen, Agneta LU (2018) In Journal of Alcoholism & Drug Dependence 6(2). p.2-7
Abstract
Objective: People who suffer from psychiatric illness have a more than doubled lifetime risk of acquiring an alcohol or drug use disorder. Furthermore, hazardous substance use impairs treatment outcomes and protracts the duration of illness among people with mental disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate substance use among people with psychiatric disabilities receiving municipality-based mental health services, any associations to socio-demographic and well-being variables, to diagnosis or to level of functioning, and any changes at a 15-month follow-up.

Methods: One-hundred-and-twenty-three persons with psychiatric disabilities but no diagnosed substance use disorder participated and completed the Alcohol Use... (More)
Objective: People who suffer from psychiatric illness have a more than doubled lifetime risk of acquiring an alcohol or drug use disorder. Furthermore, hazardous substance use impairs treatment outcomes and protracts the duration of illness among people with mental disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate substance use among people with psychiatric disabilities receiving municipality-based mental health services, any associations to socio-demographic and well-being variables, to diagnosis or to level of functioning, and any changes at a 15-month follow-up.

Methods: One-hundred-and-twenty-three persons with psychiatric disabilities but no diagnosed substance use disorder participated and completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test (DUDIT) at baseline and the follow-up. Self-report questionnaires were employed to estimate different aspects of well-being in terms of quality of life and self-rated health. Level of functioning and severity of psychiatric symptoms were assessed by the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale.

Results: Nineteen percent of participants had hazardous use of alcohol (14%) or drugs (5%) at baseline, while 23% did not use alcohol and 89% did not use drugs. Since only few participants reported drug use, inferential analyses concentrated on alcohol use. Participants with a foreign origin and lower education were less likely to exhibit alcohol use, including hazardous alcohol use. Sex and age were unrelated to alcohol use, as were the wellbeing variables, level of functioning, symptom severity and self-reported diagnosis. Alcohol and drug use patterns were stable at the follow-up.

Conclusion: The findings contribute with knowledge about hazardous substance use among people with psychiatric disabilities and indicate that preventive measures are warranted within the municipality-based mental health services. Staff in the municipality-based mental health services must stay alert on this issue and screening for hazardous use of alcohol and drugs should be considered. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
in
Journal of Alcoholism & Drug Dependence
volume
6
issue
2
pages
6 pages
publisher
OMICS Publishing Group
ISSN
2329-6488
DOI
10.4172/2329-6488.1000305
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
c49faf9d-1fe4-4381-9bb5-c5b0da95aec3
date added to LUP
2019-06-11 22:46:56
date last changed
2019-06-12 14:28:02
@article{c49faf9d-1fe4-4381-9bb5-c5b0da95aec3,
  abstract     = {{Objective: People who suffer from psychiatric illness have a more than doubled lifetime risk of acquiring an alcohol or drug use disorder. Furthermore, hazardous substance use impairs treatment outcomes and protracts the duration of illness among people with mental disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate substance use among people with psychiatric disabilities receiving municipality-based mental health services, any associations to socio-demographic and well-being variables, to diagnosis or to level of functioning, and any changes at a 15-month follow-up.<br/><br/>Methods: One-hundred-and-twenty-three persons with psychiatric disabilities but no diagnosed substance use disorder participated and completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) and the Drug Use Disorders Identification Test (DUDIT) at baseline and the follow-up. Self-report questionnaires were employed to estimate different aspects of well-being in terms of quality of life and self-rated health. Level of functioning and severity of psychiatric symptoms were assessed by the Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) scale.<br/><br/>Results: Nineteen percent of participants had hazardous use of alcohol (14%) or drugs (5%) at baseline, while 23% did not use alcohol and 89% did not use drugs. Since only few participants reported drug use, inferential analyses concentrated on alcohol use. Participants with a foreign origin and lower education were less likely to exhibit alcohol use, including hazardous alcohol use. Sex and age were unrelated to alcohol use, as were the wellbeing variables, level of functioning, symptom severity and self-reported diagnosis. Alcohol and drug use patterns were stable at the follow-up.<br/><br/>Conclusion: The findings contribute with knowledge about hazardous substance use among people with psychiatric disabilities and indicate that preventive measures are warranted within the municipality-based mental health services. Staff in the municipality-based mental health services must stay alert on this issue and screening for hazardous use of alcohol and drugs should be considered.}},
  author       = {{Eklund, Mona and Ojehagen, Agneta}},
  issn         = {{2329-6488}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{2--7}},
  publisher    = {{OMICS Publishing Group}},
  series       = {{Journal of Alcoholism & Drug Dependence}},
  title        = {{Hazardous Substance Use among People with Psychiatric Disabilities Visiting Day Centers}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2329-6488.1000305}},
  doi          = {{10.4172/2329-6488.1000305}},
  volume       = {{6}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}